Washington, D.C
A Venezuelan Bite in the Heart of Washington, D.C. | Caracas Chronicles
Historically, migrants around the world have gathered around a table. Whether to keep their traditions alive, celebrate big moments, or find comfort during hard times, food is deeply linked to cultural identity. It represents a people’s heritage, history, and values. Although those statements are not unique to Venezuelans, the Venezuelan arepa has found a permanent home in the capital of the United States, exemplifying the power of food to connect the diaspora.
Gabriela “Gaby” Febres lived in Miami since she was a kid after her mom, born and raised in Maracaibo, got an opportunity to move to the United States. When Febres graduated from high school, she left for Washington D.C. to study audio engineering at American University, one of the most prestigious universities in the area. Most of her friends were from other countries during this time, and she had no strong connection to Venezuela other than her family back in Florida. After finishing college, she planned to move to New York or California and search for a job. However, one night she attended a bar in Arlington, Virginia, close to D.C., to watch a soccer match. Venezuela played against Chile in the Copa América, and she went with her only Venezuelan friend.
It was 2011. That night she met Ali Arellano, a Venezuelan already established in the city, who had a side business selling Central American products to convenience stores catering to Latinos. They agreed to meet again to watch the next game, and Febres decided to partake, as she longed for this sense of community. Soon she discovered that Ali was not selling Venezuelan products yet, even when there was an untapped potential to cater to the diaspora she was a part of. They talked about working together. A week later, the pair started distributing queso guayanés, queso telita, queso de mano, and other typical Venezuelan dairy products to the markets Ali was already serving, but also to a group of Venezuelan people who were eager for a taste of home. Through word of mouth and social media, they established the beginning of a very loyal customer base that has followed them since.
What started as a friendship became in 2014 a partnership that spans four locations, a warehouse, and event catering services that have reached even the White House.
Fast forward over 10 years, they co-own Arepa Zone and Antojitos de Tu País, the most successful arepa business in the DMV (DC, Maryland, and Virginia) area. Their success as Febres says, is rooted in providing the Venezuelan community with a sense of belonging through meaningful food and the pair’s hard work.
As soon as they started delivering their products door to door, the business was built and sustained by the then-small Venezuelan diaspora’s needs: to find the foods, ingredients, and “antojitos” that brought them joy away from home. These products, available in specific areas of Florida such as Miami, were not found in the DMV stores, so Arellano and Febres quickly realized their business’ potential.
Eventually, people who bought these products began to request full meals that were representative of our culture, not only to eat them themselves but also to share them with other foreigners and locals in the DMV.
The expansion of Venezuelan food is deeply linked to our growing presence in the United States, which nearly tripled since 2010, according to the Migration Policy Institute, precisely when Arepa Zone saw its biggest growth. After successfully selling their antojitos via door-to-door services, the pair acquired a food truck in 2014 that served arepas, cachapas, and tequeños, among other products. Apart from the small Venezuelan diaspora, their first customers were mostly college students, consultants, and multilateral organization workers from diverse backgrounds.
Back then, Febres would spend up to two minutes explaining what an arepa was, what it was made of, and what made it so special. Eventually, she had to adapt their menu to make it more “internationally friendly” by installing a “McDonald’s style” system. Every menu item had a number to facilitate people’s ordering process and not make them pronounce every name.
However, they quickly pivoted and understood that education was directly related to their mission: to provide meaningful food and connection through Venezuelan food, for Venezuelans and non-Venezuelans alike. It was a success. To this day, Gaby’s biggest shock and pride comes when people from very diverse backgrounds go into the store, order a reina pepiada or a cachapa with their “broken Spanish”, and bring other people from different cultures who quickly become arepa lovers. Once, they might have had a Venezuelan friend who brought them to the restaurant, but now they’re spreading the word of the arepa on their own.
Despite serving a diverse audience, Arepa Zone keeps expanding options for Venezuelans and being the default meeting point for celebrations and occasions within the Venezuelan community, such as Copa América and gatherings during the Venezuelan elections. When asked if her food has suffered any modifications due to the large international influence and their location, Gaby defaults to saying that they keep getting closer and closer to their roots by offering even more specific products, such as pan de jamón, mandocas, and pepitos. However, their customer base and the menu item’s biggest fans are not exclusively Venezuelan.
Since a few months ago, they have seen an uptick in the number of Venezuelans that line up outside their restaurants and now work as food delivery drivers after coming to the US under diverse circumstances. They also come in as patrons and enjoy the food as well.
As the Arepa Zone story began with a Copa América match, the Cup is just one of the many excuses patrons use to visit one of their four locations or the warehouse to enjoy a bite that makes them feel closer to home. Whether to celebrate a goal from La Vinotinto or mourn yet another electoral loss, now the arepa is also part of those moments as Venezuelans find and shape our identity in Washington D.C.
WASHINGTON (7News) — An ice cream truck caught fire in Southeast D.C. on Thursday, the D.C. Fire and EMS Department said.
The commercial vehicle was reported fully engulfed when crews arrived in the 1700 block of Tobias Drive SE.
SEE ALSO | Man, woman injured in Southeast DC double shooting
Firefighters quickly put out the flames and prevented the fire from spreading to nearby buildings.
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No injuries were reported.
WASHINGTON (7News) — The Catholic archbishop of Washington, D.C., Cardinal Robert McElroy, on Wednesday removed a well-known priest as an exorcist of the archdiocese after he made public comments suggesting that UFO sightings were the work of demons.
McElroy said the archdiocese also was cutting ties with the St. Michael Center for Spiritual Renewal, a Washington-based nonprofit headed by the priest, Monsignor Stephen Rossetti.
The archbishop said Rossetti’s statements “linking UFOs to demonic presence and the Center’s recent use of social media gravely undermine the Church’s very precise teaching on the devil, demons and exorcism.”
“There’s a danger here,” Rossetti said in a May 29 video posted on his Facebook page addressing UFO sightings and the existence of aliens. “As an exorcist I wanted to raise that danger. And that is that demons like to hide. … They don’t want us to know what they’re doing because they’re more effective when we don’t realize it.”
“They can kind of get into your head, you know, and manipulate things in the world to influence us to do evil.”
“It’s my personal belief that probably many if not most of these UFO sightings are in fact demons,” Rossetti added.
Rossetti also said that people can be good Catholics and believe there’s life on other planets, though he does not personally believe life exists elsewhere.
In a statement posted on the St. Michael Center website, Rossetti said he was saddened by the action of the archdiocese.
“I ask forgiveness for any ways that I have not been faithful to the teachings of the Church’s Magisterium, particularly in the cited video on ‘aliens and the demonic,’” he said. “I believe it is of the utmost importance to be obedient to the Church and I will continue to endeavor to subject all that I do and the Center to be thus obedient.”
Rossetti, who has over 148,000 followers on Instagram, is a prominent psychologist as well as an exorcist. His center has specialized in offering spiritual healing for priests troubled by various difficulties.
In 2023, he told The Associated Press there was increasing and renewed appetite for information about demonic possession and exorcism.
Washington, D.C
Nurses at Washington D.C.’s largest hospital call on leadership to reverse planned cuts to maternal health
RNs at MedStar Washington Hospital Center say closure of postpartum unit will disproportionately harm marginalized and underserved communities
Union nurses at MedStar Washington Hospital Center (MWHC) in Washington, D.C. are demanding that management stop the planned closure of an entire postpartum unit, announced National Nurses Organizing Committee/National Nurses United (NNOC/NNU). The hospital notified the union on May 26, 2026 of its intention to eliminate 11 maternal health beds and displace eight nurses by July 26, 2026, leaving MWHC with one postpartum unit.
In a follow-up town hall with staff nurses, Chief Nursing Officer Ariam Yitbarek confirmed the closure. Other leaders have additionally informed staff that the hospital will strictly limit scheduled C-sections and inductions for patients from numerous D.C. maternal health organizations. The list of organizations includes many that primarily serve low-income patients, immigrants, and patients of color, all communities with significantly higher risks of maternal mortality. Additionally, staff were informed that Kaiser Permanente, which notably insures a large number of DC city employees and even many of MWHC’s own workers, will see a strict limit on scheduling inductions and C-sections for their patients as well.
“Closing postpartum unit 5F will gravely impact those most affected by health disparities,” said Stephanie Sims-Coates, RN in the neonatal intensive care unit. “Our low-income families and families of color will be most affected by this closure. Families trust the medical staff at MWHC and plan to come to us for their care. In a city where Black women make up 90 percent of pregnancy-related deaths despite being only half the population, the hospital’s decision to close this unit is a significant mistake.”
Community leaders and healthcare workers are joining the call for MedStar to put patients before profits and keep the unit open. This past weekend, nurses met with D.C. mayoral candidate and Ward 4 councilwoman Janeese Lewis George about the planned closure and the impact it would have on DC’s most vulnerable residents.
“Maternal mortality is a crisis for Washington, DC, and our healthcare system needs to address the crisis immediately, rather than exacerbate the challenges that birthing parents face,” said Councilwoman Janeese Lewis George. “Now is the time to invest in health care, rather than make cuts. I want to work with the hospital to identify solutions that work for patients and the provider.”
“In my time at Washington Hospital Center, I’ve seen the hospital tout its Safe Moms, Safe Babies program and host a community baby shower specifically designed to call attention to the maternal mortality crisis,” said Marcqueata “Tiya” Butler, RN in the Mother/Baby unit. “Their current plan to shut down 11 postpartum beds betrays the hospital’s stated commitments. They are aware of persistent inequities in access to care. We are calling on the hospital to consider the impacts on the community, safeguard the mothers and infants of DC and commit to addressing the maternal mortality rate.”
In 2024, MedStar Health, a registered non-profit, reported $9 billion in operating revenue.
NNOC/NNU represents more than 2,200 registered nurses at Washington Hospital Center.
National Nurses United is the largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the United States with more than 225,000 members nationwide. NNU affiliates include California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee, DC Nurses Association, Michigan Nurses Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, and New York State Nurses Association.
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